Hand brake



March 12, 1935.

J. F. OCONNOR HAND BRAKE Filed May 12, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inuenfarfilwfnmr March 1935- J. F. OCONNCIDR 1,993,977

HAND BRAKE Filed May 12, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 49 9 I ya R\ I M PatentedMar. 12,1935 v I l UNITED STATES s ATE 1,993,977

I HAND BRAKE John F. OConnor, (lhicagmI ll. Application May 12, 1933,serial No. 670,740

3 Claims. J (01. 74-505) TOFFTICEFZF This invention relates toimprovements in hand end wall 10 of a freight car, the brake properbrake'and more particularly but not exclusively comprising, broadly, anoperating. wheel A; a a hand brake adapted for application to freighthousing 13; a chain winding sheave or drum C; cars. I a gear D; aneccentric E; a retainer plate F; and

One object of the invention is to provide a'hand a rcleaselever G. 5

brake having a high leverage ratio betweenv the The housing B preferablycomprises an inner operating member and the chain winding drum mainshell or casing 11 of cylindrical'form, hav

or sheave, the brake'being further characterized ing' an integralback-wall 12, said shell being f by the fact that the internal frictionof thepa'rts riveted to the vertical car end wall by a plu-v 10'. ismade in excess of 50% of the power input rali y f riv 13 pa in hr u h iable l s 1 whereby to render the brake automatically selfor ears 14 castintegrally with the shell, and locking" in any adjusted position. Ithrough the end wall. The housing B is com Another object of theinvention is to provide pleted yfi V D pl e 5 50 O CY1 a hand brake ofthe self-locking orholding type drical form'with a flange the lattertelescope 15 wherein the chain or other tensioning element ins over the,annular wall of the shell 11 so as to 15,1

may be instantly and completely released or dis-, 'form a WBat flQ FlI'O d i r Chamber for connected from the operating element proper, theeperat ne'pa s. At h bottom, the hous such as a hand wheel, so as toleave the latter iss itably apertured as i di t df 173 30-. stationaryduring the release action. commodate the projecting handle of therelease;

A still further object of the invention is to lever G and, at one Side,the Shell 11 is P d .20

provide a hand brake of the chain pull-up type W th'a eg a y f rmdepending fgllide which is particularly adapted for application tomation 18 for the pull- Chain At its Center; the end walls of freightcars; which is of rugged the back wall 12 of the housing shellisprovided and substantial construction; which consists of with anoutwardly offset hollow boss 20 of non.- vfew parts adapted toveconomical manufacture; circular form over which is seated and. non- 2;and which has all of the parts compactly arranged rotatably associatedtherewith, a spindle '21 hav I particularly with reference to thedistance which ing an inner enlarged circular bearing section 22 thebrake projects outwardly from the wall; and an outer longer. bearingsection 23 of smaller Other objects of the invention will more clearlydiameter, for the purpose hereinafter described; gobappear from thedescription and claims herein- The eccentric E is provided with anouterafter following. sleeve 24 rotatable on the bearing section 23 ofIn the drawings forming a part of this specifi the spindle and with aninner eccentricbearing cation, Figure 1 is a front elevational view of asection 25. The eccentric E, which extends out-'- hand brake having theimprovements incorpo- Wardly of the housing and has bearing ina bearawayto better accommodate the figure on the hand wheel A as indicated at2'7, so that, upon sheet. Figure 2 is a vertical, sectional view cor- Irotation of the hand Wheel, the eccentric. E will respondingsubstantially to the line 2-2'of Figure be simultaneously andcorrespondingly rotated. 1. Figure 3 is a vertical, sectional viewcorre- The: hub 28 of thehand wheelhas an outer.coun-' rated therein,part of the hand wheelbeing broken ing flange 26 ofthe cap plate 15, iskeyed tozthe 35,

4o.sponding substantially to the broken line 33 ter bore 29 within whichis received a washer of Figure 2. Figure 4 is an enlarged detailed 30and nutBL-the latter. cooperating. with a sectional view correspondingto the line 4 -4 of through bolt 32, the head of which is seated with-Figure 2. Figure 5 isa front elevational view in said hollow boss 20 andby which'the,.parts; of-another hand brake embodying the. improvearemaintained in assembled relation. i I

ments, the hand wheel thereof being indicated in The sheave wheel ordrum'C-is provided with 45,

dotted lines only.- Figure 6 is a horizontal secarim 33 of suitablecontour to re'ceiveand seat tional View corresponding to the line 6--6of the links of the chain 19, as best shown by the Figure 5. Figure 7 isa detailed vertical sectional cross section thereof in Figure 2, and, atone point view corresponding to the line '7'l of Figure 5. in itsperiphery is provided with an integral' And Figure 8 is an elevationalview of a clutch chain attacln'ng :lug 34, the normal position of 50.

member employed in the structure of Figures 5 which when the brakes arereleased, is as shown and 6. r in Figure 3.- To insure the 'sheavewheelalways In carrying out the invention in the-embodi returning and beingstopped at the position ment illustrated in Figures 1 to 4, bothinclusive. shown in Figure 3, when the brake is released,

the hand brake is shown applied to a sheet metal the shell 11 of thehousingis providedgwith a 5;?

radially inwardly projecting integral stop lug 35 in the path of a lug135 formed integral with the sheave wheel C in line with the lug 34thereof. The sheave wheel C is further provided with a main web 36 onits inner side adjacent the back wall of the housing and an integralbearing sleeve 37 which rotates upon the inner bearing section 22 of thespindle, as clearly shown. Said bearing sleeve 37, as shown in Figure 2,is disposed within the eccentric section 25 of the eccentric E. Thesheave wheel C is further provided, on the inside of the rim, with anintegral internal gear 38 with which cooperates the gear D, ashereinafter explained.

Said gear D, which is of lesser external diameter than that of theinternal gear 38 and comprised of a slightly lesser number of teeth 39than the internal gear 38, is formed with a hub 40 rotatable on theeccentric bearing section 25. Said hub 40 is integrally connected withthe gear rim by a radial web 41 and the latter is provided on its outerface with a circular series of alternated recesses and ribs 42 so as toprovide an annular face ratchet for the purpose hereinafter described.

The plate F is in the form of an annular flat ring, the central openingof which is such as to rotatably fit the eccentric section 25 and ofsuch over-all outside diameter as to approximate the outer diameter ofthe gear D. At its upper portion, the plate F is provided with a pair ofspaced ears 43-43 on its outer side between and to which is pivotallyconnected the car 44 of the upper end of the release lever G, as bymeans of the hinge rivet 45. At its bottom, the plate F is also providedwith a spaced pair. of outwardly extending lugs 46-46 betweenwhich isreceived the handle end 47 of the release lever, the latter beingrestrained by said lugs 46 from moving angularly with respect to theplate F but adapted to be swung in and out with reference thereto, asclear from Figures 2 and 4. To prevent the plate F from rotating but atthe same time to permit it to shift bodily in consonance with therotation of the eccentric E on which it is mount ed, the cap plate ofthe housing is provided with an inwardly extending pair of ears or lugs48-48 alongside and overlapping the lugs 46. The inner faces of the lugs48 are preferably somewhat rounded, as indicated at 49, and spaced aparta distance slightly greater than the overall distance between the outerfaces'of the lugs 46 so as to accommodate the bodily and slight angularmovements of the plate F when the lat- .ter is shifted as hereinafterdescribed.

The release lever G, pivoted to the plate F as hereinbefore described,is formed with an annular ring section 50 between the pivot lug 46 andthe handle section .47, said ring section 50 having a central openingsufliciently enlarged to at all times clear the bearing flange 26 of thecap plate 15. Below the spindle, the release lever 47 is pro vided withone or more inwardly projecting teeth 51 which are entered throughsuitable corre spondingly located openings 52 in the plate F and areadapted to engage with the radial ratchet teeth 42 of the gear D, asshown best in Figure 4; To normally maintain engagement of said teeth 51with the ratchet teeth 52, the release lever is provided with anintegral centering. lug 53 on which is seated a coil spring 54, theother end of said spring being seated in a suitable out- Wardly'extendedhollow boss 55 formed integral with the cap plate 15.

The operation of the brake is as follows, as-

suming the brake in full release as shown in the drawings. The handwheel A is rotated clock-- wise, which obviously will impart asimultane-- ous and equal rotation to the eccentric E. Ob-- viously asthe eccentric E is rotated, the true center of mesh of the two gears 39and 38 will travel around in a well known manner and, due to thedifference in number of teeth on the gear D and internal gear 38 of thesheave wheel, the eccentric movement thus imparted to the gear D willinduce a differential movement between the gear D and sheave wheel C andan advance of the sheave wheel in an amount corresponding to thedifference in number of teeth of the two meshing gears which, in actualpractice, will preferably be three or four teeth. The gear wheel D,however, is prevented from rotation due to the fact that it isinterlocked with the release lever G, which in turn is interlocked withthe plate F and the latter prevented from rotation by the stationary orfixed lugs 4949 of the housing. In actual practice, the hand wheel A maybe spun during the initial stages of the take-up'of the slack in thechain and until suchtime as the chain becomes taut. Furthermore, due tothe arrangement described, the internal friction willbe such as toslightly ex.

ceed 50% or" the power input to the wheel A;

and hence, regardless of the tension or load that may ultimately beexerted by the chain 19, the parts remain automatically self-locked inany adjusted position. Furthermore, it is apparent that the leverageratio between the hand wheel and the sheave wheel is exceedingly high,said ratio being primarily dependent upon the difference in number ofteeth of the two meshing gears 38 and 39 and the difi'erences indiameters of the hand wheel gear D and sheave wheel C. In actualpractice, for hand brakeslof freight cars, a maximum force exerted bythe brakeman using one hand on a hand wheel positioned as shown andusing his other hand to steady himself, is generally assumed to be aboutone hundred twenty-five pounds and the desired maxi mum tension to beplaced .on the chain is generally assumed to be thirty nine hundred andfifty pounds. The leverage ratio and internal friction are made suchthat the power input (applied force times distance through which moved)on the hand Wheel, will somewhat exceed twice that of the effective load(ultimate tension on the brake chain times distance through which movedon the sheave wheel), the difference between the latter amount and thepower input being that absorbed by the internal friction of the parts.

To release the brake chain and at the same time prevent spinning of thehand wheel, the release lever G has its lower end pulled outwardly, thusdisengaging the teeth 51 from the annular ratchet 42. This immediatelyserves to free the gear D so that it may then rotate freely on theeccentric bearing section 25 as the sheave wheel C is rotated in acounter-clockwise direction under the tension of the brake chain. Inactual practice, the diameter of the sheave wheel C will be made suchthat only about 270 of rotation thereof will be required to take up anyusual amount of slack and apply the brakes to the desired degree andshould there be an unusual or excessive amount of slack, approximatelyadditional rotation of the sheave wheel is available if necessary. Byproviding the stop lugs 35 and as shown in Figure 3, assurance is hadthat, at the beginning of every applicaslots oropenings 88 adapted to-aline with thetion of the brakes, the maximum speed of takeup willalways occur since the brake chain is always tangent to the sheave atthe starting of th'e'wi'nd-ing operation. As soon as release has beeneffected, the brakeman then releases'his grip onthe release lever G andthe latter is forced back to itsbperativ'e engagement with the gear Dunder the influence oftlie spring 54, as will be apparent. I

Referring nextto theform of the invention illustrated in Figures 5 to 8inclusive, the brake therein showncomprises, broadly,'a housing M; ahandWheel 1-1; a chain winding sheave or drum I;'*a-n-id1er sheave J;reduction gearing herei in'afte'r more particularly described; a clutchmember Kyand arelease lever L.

Thehousing mas shown, preferably comprises a main shell or casing havinga back wall 60 rivetedto the car wall 1-10 and an outstanding flange 61having vertical ends and a generally curved top, as best shown inFigure5. A cap plate 62' is-also employed having a straight horizontalbottomedge and conformed in contour tothje flange '61 of the shell andprovided with a'flan'ge 63 adapted to telescope over said flange 61;thus leaving the bottom of the housing open. The back wallet is providedwith two inwardly extended hollow and non-circular bosses 64' and SS-for the reception of the heads of the two retainer bolts 66 and 67,'thebolts being held tatably mounted on the shank of the bolt 67 and. hasits-periphery likewise formed to receive the li'nlss of the pull up.chain 119, which is passed over the idler J and has its end secured to3.

lug 72 formed integral with the sheave I. As clearly shown in Figure 5,the lug 72 is so disposed that, under full release, said lug'engages.

with the idler J and limits the unwinding or counter-clockwise rotationof the sheave TJ so as to insure starting of the rotation of the latterin awinding direction-always at the same point.

The hand wheel H is provided with a hub 73 seated against the outer wallof a hollow boss 74 formed integrally with and projecting outwardly fromthe cap plate 62. Secured to the hub 73 as by key 75 is a hollow memberhaving an outer bearing section 76 and an integral driving gear '77,said member being rotatable on the bolt 66 and within a suitable openingprovided in the cap plate as shown. To hold the parts in assembledrelation, a washer '79 is applied over the end of said member andretained in place by the nut 80 threaded onto the reduced threadedend ofthe bolt.

The driving gear 77 is in mesh with a larger diameter intermediate gear81 rotatable on the other bolt 67, said gear 81 having preferably formedintegral therewith a smaller gear 82 which in turn meshes with-anddrives the nnal gear ,ber.

openingsfll of the sheave -I. As clear from-Fig ure 6, the bearingsection84- of the gear 83 bears against th'ewe'b' '70 of the sheave Iandis adapted to be normally interlocked or clutched to the lat ter bythe clutch member K. Said clutch member K is in the form of a ringofsubstantially channels cross section, thusproviding anannular groove 89,theinner wall of the clutch member K being provided with a plurality ofradially arranged teeth or lugs 90--90'- movably mounted in the slots88of the gear wheel' 83and adapted to-enter the slots 71 of the sheave I,as shown. Said clutch member K is rotatably and slidably mount ed in thebearing Seacoast and on the hub-86 of the gear 83 andis adapted to beretracted or withdrawn from operative clutch engagement with the sheaveI; by a ship-per member 91. The latter is provided at its'i'nnerend'with an arcuate flange 92 engaging within the" annular slot 89, saidflange 92 being connected to the outer thickened end 93 by an arcuateflange 94'and onwhich the bearing section 84 of the gear 83-isadapted tohave bearing, The outer end' 93 of said shipper member is slidably butnon-rotatively mounted within the hollow boss '14 of the cap plate andis normally pressed 'inwardly'so' as to maintain the clutch relation bya coil spring 95 surrounding the bearing section 76, and-seated within asuitable annular recess in said section 93. As obvious, the'inne'r' endof said spring bears against the member '91- and the outer end againstthe cap plate. T 1

At its upper side, the shipper member 91 is provided with a short rack96with which cooperates a segmental gear 97 carried by a short,-horizonta-lly extending shaft 98' mounted insuitable bearings formed inthe-boss 74, said shaft 98 having secured to its right hand end, asviewed in Figure 5, the release lever L which'normallyhangs downwardlybehind 'thehandwheel H and I which is extended appreciably below thelatter so as to provide a'hand grip 99 that maybe readily grasp-ed bythe brakeman.

The operation is as follows, assuming the parts in full release, asshown in the drawings. As the hand wheel H is turned clockwise, the gear77induces counter-clockwise rotation of the gears 81 and 82. The latterbeing in mesh with the gear the several gears arranged as shown, theleverber K- rotates in unison with the gear 83 and sheave I. During thetake-up of the chain and application of the tension to the brakes,internal friction occurs in various places in the driving mechanism as,for instance, between the gear bearing member '7677 and bolt 66, betweenthe several sets of meshing gear teeth, between the gear 8182 and thebolt 6'7, between the sheaves I and J and the respective bolts on whichrotated, and between the gear 83 and the bolt 66 and bearing section 94of the shipper mem- In actual practice, the gear ratio and the internalfriction will be made such that, as in the first described form, morethan of the power imput will be absorbed by the internal friction so asto render the parts self-locking in any adjusted position, regardless ofthe tension which may ultimately be applied to the brake chain. Toeflect release, the release lever L is pulled outwardly or to the right,as viewed in Figure '7, thereby shifting the shipper member 91 outwardlyand pullingthe clutch member K so as to disengage its teeth from thesheave I and thus allowing the latter to rotate freely in an unwindingdirection under the tension of the brake chain and obviously reducingthe internal friction below 50% and leaving all of the driving mechanismas well as the hand wheel stationary during the release action. Asheretofore explained, the sheave I will come to rest in the positionbest shown in Figure 5 where the lug '72 engages the idler sheave J,whereupon the release lever L is released by the brakeman, said leverthen returning to normal position as well as the clutch member K. Inthis latter connection, attention is directed to the fact that theweight of the lever L is such as to assist the spring 95 in effectingautomatic return of the parts to clutch engaging relation.

From the preceding description, taken in connection with the drawings,it will be seen that the chain winding sheave and hand wheel in bothconstructions, rotate about the same axis; that in both constructions, aclutch-like arrangement is incorporated in the driving gearing betweenthe hand wheel and chain winding sheave, which clutch arrangement may bereleased so as to per mit the chain winding sheave to rotate in anunwinding direction freely and relieved of the greater part of theinternal friction; and that there is ample clearance between the rim ofthe hand wheel and the housing and wall of the car so as to preventpossibility of injury to the hands of the brakeman. Furthermore, as willbe obvious, all of the main parts may be readily manufactured in theform of castings at comparatively small expense and there are nodelicate parts likely to become broken or to get out of order.

Although the preferred manner of carrying out the invention has hereinbeen shown and described, the same is merely illustrative and allchanges and modifications are contemplated that come within the scope ofthe claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:

1. In a hand brake, the combination with a housing; of a chain windingdrum rotatably mounted within the housing; a driving gear in mesh withsaid drum also disposed within the housing; a hand wheel; eccentricmeans interposed between said hand wheel and driving gear foreccentrically shifting the latter; a retainer plate within the housingand substantially axially aligned with the driving gear; meanspreventing rotation of said retainer plate; and a spring governedrelease lever mounted on said plate and normally having interlockingengagement with said driving gear.

2. In a hand brake, the combination with a substantially cylindricalhousing adapted to be secured to a vertical car wall; of a fixed spindlewithin and extending substantially axially of the housing; a drumrotatably mounted on said spindle within the housing and having aperipheral chain winding rim and an interior gear; a driving gear inmesh with said drum gear and housed within the rim of thelatter; aneccentric rotatable about said spindle and disposed within said drivinggear whereby the eccentric, driving gear and winding rim of the drum arecompactly assembled; manually operable means exterior of the housing foreffecting rotation of the eccentric;

a retainer plate supported by said eccentric and with respect to whichthe eccentric is rotatable; a release lever mounted on said plate withinthe housing and normally interlocked through the plate with saiddriving-gear, said lever having a portion thereof extended outside ofthe housing for efiecting release of the driving gear.

3. In a hand brake, the combination with a housing having a bearingspindle; of a chain winding drum rotatably mounted on said spindlewithin the housing and having an internal annular gear; a wheel having aperipheral gear housed within and meshing with said internal gear; aneccentric bearing on which said last named gear wheel is mounted; meansexterior of the housing for rotating said eccentric; a release leverpivotally supported within the housing, the pivotal axis of the releaselever extending parallel to the plane of the gear wheel and the levernormally having direct and operative engagement therewith, said releaselever being shiftable in consonance with the eccentric shifting of thegear wheel; and means on the interior of the housing preventing rotativemovement of the release 1ever.,

JOHN F. OCONNOR.

